Restless Days And Nights
by Hardman 5509
Summary: How long has it been? Since we seen each other's faces? Too long. So let's meet Senpai. Souji and Rise meet again. Flames are accepted.
1. Let's Meet

Souji couldn't sleep.

He normally could sleep in anything, anywhere. He slept on trains before, in fact, he rather enjoyed it; it made the trip much shorter. But he just couldn't. A pillow didn't help. Blankets of different sizes and thickness made him uncomfortable, but it was worth a shot. He didn't have anything else to do but sleep, all the books he bought with him have been read in the past hour.

The reason he couldn't fall asleep was because he had giant butterflies in his stomach. He never felt this away before; he fought GODS with fearless abandon.

So why was visiting Rise such a hard thing?

His college work for the next two weeks had been finished, so he arranged to visit her at her next stop on her tour. He didn't know what they were going to do, and that is the reason why he was so nervous. Five years ago this won't be a problem. But that WAS five years ago. She rose up to a sensational star, landing a leading role in last year's biggest blockbuster. He currently worked for a degree in engineering, hoping to take control of his mom's company.

And it had been at least two years since they seen hide or hair of each other. They exchanged letters and photos, but no human contact. Rise's schedule was very busy, and the movie did take a while.

Souji fidgeted in his seat. He and Rise had something special. He protected her from monsters. She watched his back. They talked about everything. He endured her cooking, but it got better with practice, especially with the help of an experienced chef. She gave him free meals at her grandma's tofu shop.

And the two shared a bed once. Nanako and Ryotaro had gone out shopping one night and he invited her over to study. As all things, one thing led to another and the next morning lead to close encounter when Nanako came in with breakfast. Souji thought he lost a couple years of his life that morning. Thankfully Rise got out the window with all of her clothes without being seen.

He still had at least two hours to go. So he tried to sleeping again. This time, he imagined Rise-chan in a swimsuit. A blue one that Teddie had bought but never got used. This worked much better, but then he was reminded of why he couldn't sleep in the first place.

Little kids playing with toy lasers. Every person's nightmare.

* * *

"THANK YOU, KYOTO!"

The deafening roar of the fans drowned the city's name out when Risette finished her song. She breathed heavily; the concert was over after a full three hours of singing and dancing. And with that, she waved to everyone, and walked backstage and promptly collapsed into her chair. She grabbed a wet towel and placed over her sweaty forehead before her manager walked over.

"Great, Risette-chan! Just…amazing! This is the biggest crowd I ever seen in my life!" He shouted so she could hear. Rise just sighed. He always did stuff like this. Her new manager was a bit paranoid about her leaving, so he butt-kissed more than anyone else in the business. It was nice, but he just got on his nerves.

"Thanks. I'm going to bed. I just need some sleep." She mustered up the energy to walk out of the concert and to her hotel, avoiding the paparazzi. The lights came on for a minute, then off, along with the clothes. She fell dead asleep as she landed in the bed.

And that was her schedule. Wake up. Breakfast. Practice. Lunch. Practice. Fan Interaction. Dinner. Show. Bed. It got tiring. Rise hardly got a break, and she had one more week left of the tour before she could be given some free time. No agency bugging her 24/7.

But the paparazzi. Oh god, the paparazzi. The camera nerd that tracked her to Inaba five years now had become an official journalist. He taught others about her moves and tricks, and now she can't leave with being followed. She assaulted her old stalker and only managed to get out of trouble because the stalker didn't press charges; he now had a fragment of Risette's nail.

She actually woke up only after five minutes of troubled sleep. She rolled under her covers, but sleep never came. Rolling over to the left, she watched her alarm clock for an hour, watching every minute tick by.

Nothing doing.

She rolled over to the right. There were letters on the night stand. She already read them, but she decided to read them again. Fans sent letters by the thousands every day, but these letters all came from one person, Souji Seta. The only letters she kept were his and her No.1 fan. Rise read all the letters at once, taking another hour.

She got reminded of the past few moments she had with him. The time the two of them went to the fanciest restaurant in Inaba. Rise gave him a back-stage pass to one of her concert s, and she gave it her all. They celebrated the New Year's in a balloon. One of the many things that were great about being a star was access to many things. And he was coming tomorrow to see her. How long had it been? She couldn't remember long, but she didn't care.

She fell asleep because she remembered his smile.

* * *

The next day was thankfully free, so Rise finished talking with her fans and got some alone time in an ice cream parlor. The paparazzi reported that she was on diet, but that was far from the truth. Unlike those stars, she watched what she ate. Her grandma had read about other star's eating habitats, and when Rise came over, she taught her granddaughter everything about healthy eating.

Souji was new to Kyoto, so he needed a map to find the parlor. It took him fifteen minutes longer the allotted time he promised to get there.

And there she was. Waiting for him. She was wearing a simple orange tank top with a lime green stripe, black pants with black shoes, and a lime green wristband. She had a small sundae that was half-finished, now she just slowly tapping her spoon against the bowl. She looked bored. And her ass…

Souji shook his head, dispelling the nasty thoughts. First time in two years and the first few thoughts was about her ass? Good thing she didn't use her Persona, he could be serious pain, or, as Yosuke would have said, a 'critical hit'.

Truth was that he was scared. The two had a relationship and the two just drifted from each other, switching to a long-distance relationship because of each other's lives. The feelings were strong, but again, not being able to see each other's faces makes it hard to confirm if the feelings are true. There was no doubt there was love between the two.

But was it still there? Two years is a long time.

But he was wasting time just standing there. He took a big intake of air and walked forward.

"Hello, Rise-chan."

"Senpai!"

_To be continued….next chapter._


	2. Let's Talk

_In a day after posting the first chapter, I got three e-mails telling me that I got Favorite Story, Story Alert, and Author Alert. That is the fastest response I've ever received to a story, and my stories get lost in the woodworks. Thank you._

…_But you forgot to leave a review._

_Well, here's to the next chapter!

* * *

_

Souji watched from afar as Rise handed out autographs and several other Risette items into the swarming crowd of fans.

The talk yesterday, as you might have guessed, was incredibly awkward. The two couldn't find much to talk about, it had been too long. Oh, they talked all right, but it was mostly small talk. They ate in silence. Souji tried to bring up about the relationship, but it died in his throat. Rise also tried to talk, but nothing formed. They said a quick 'good-bye' and went back to their hotels.

He swam through the crowd to get a better view at her. People grumbled at him. A Rise doll bounced off his head and someone dived to get it, tripping him. His arms flailed, and the two people in front of him also fell, and the rest of the dominos fell. The two police officers at the event broke the crowd to tend to the injured crowd. Souji only had a bruised ankle.

He walked over to a decorative pillar and rested his back. He just was tired. Last night was tiring. The conversation with Rise somehow made him so tired that even his water bed couldn't make him fall asleep. His eyes were closed, but they wanted to open up. He tired all sort of things. Warm milk. Reading a long book. Exercising. Not even a wink. Bags were beginning to form.

He wiped his eyes. He had to stay awake. Rise agreed to meet him after the event. Falling asleep in her arms wasn't a good ice-breaker. He went to a coffee shop nearby and bought himself a strong latte to wake him up. He looked over and noticed that Rise was leaving, going off to meet him in a park. He looked back and tried to remember what Rise liked.

Vienna coffee. What luck the shop just happened to have.

* * *

Rise managed to escape the flashing cameras inside the theater where she agreed to meet Souji for a film. A classic they had seen back in Inaba on their third date. Her manager had reserved Theater 11 just for her that afternoon. The manager didn't know about Souji, so she would be alone with him for three long hours.

Last night was hard. She thought that meeting Souji would be great. Re-open the old bond they had. It didn't work. The two didn't click off. They managed to talk, but that was all they could manage. Sleeping that night was hard. Not even imaging Souji helped. Him when she first met him. Him during the pageant. Him the last time they met. Him wearing his birthday s…

No. No naughty thoughts. The relationship they had just vanished. She can have those thoughts IF the love came back.

Once the movie started, the projectionist left, and Rise ran over to the Emergency Door. She opened the door, and Souji walked in, holding something...mmmm.

Vienna. She couldn't find any of that delicious coffee while on tour. She hadn't found a shop that sold the stuff in at least two years. She greedily grabbed the coffee out of his hands and took a sip. That was good. She needed that. Oh…

"Oh! Sorry, Senpai." She bowed to him. Souji waved.

"I can tell that you haven't that in a while." Rise smiled. She led him to the seats.

The title showed. "_Crusade For The Last Man._" The plot detailed that humanity has died off in the next 500 years. Humans from a future Earth came to the dying Earth to find the last human so they can cure a disease back on their Earth. One of Rise's mentors stared in this flick, an Takaki Suzu. The relationship between her and the main lead were superb, the scenery was beyond the years, and the action kept you on the edge on your seat.

The opening scene was that of the first human dying. A critic from Tokyo said this scene was the movie's least creditable moment, as the human flayed around like he was a sheet of paper in a tornado. Souji first laughed at this when he first saw this, and Rise slapped him. Now, he kept his mouth shut. However, Rise laughed.

"Why…" Souji asked.

"Looking back, this scene IS silly." But she still slapped him on the shoulder. "Hey! I can't believe you remember that!"

"I have a good memory. For instance, you like Vienna. Our first date was to the mall. You bought a pair of red Michael Kors 'Winsor' Loafers that day, and denied seven people that you were Risette. And then you decided to look at some more shoes…"

"Okay, okay! I get it, you have photographic memory! Geez, no wonder who were so good with the investigation." Rise looked back at the movie. The first scene showing the people from the future world appeared. The lead looked over the dead body of one of his people lying in the streets. His emotions on his face were perfect. He was appalled, confused, angry, and sad.

"You know?" Rise said. "I haven't seen this movie seen that day."

"Really?" Souji replied. "Me too."

"I take it you didn't have that style of coffee until today." Rise asked. Souji laughed at first, but then realized that was true. He had this brand three years ago. Studies and small work kept him awake rather than asleep. He wasn't a fan of this brand, but still. Quite the coincidence, huh?

The movie shifted to the first scene of the future humans landing on the now barren dead Earth. The wasteland amazed everyone, so simple, but yet so dynamic on how life-like it was. Brown skies, filled with particles of the dead ground. Wind constantly blew through the landscape, and the explorers kept their spacesuits on just to move. Remains of buildings; for you see, the explorers landed in the remains of New York, stood as mountains to everyone, and their reaction to the Statue of Liberty's head was perfect. Souji, a guy who fought evil representations of humanity in a alternative world, was amazed when he first saw this. It was so…real.

Souji shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Why did this scene remind of him of his and Rise's relationship? Barren, forgotten, and desolate. His stomach churned a bit. That coffee might have been a bad idea. Rise had the same feeling, but without the churning. Her mentor had constantly mentioned this film during her training, talking about how certain scenes made people feel. But lost love wasn't one of the emotions mentioned. She showed her pain a bit more than Souji.

Before he had a chance to talk to her, the door behind him opened. Rise quietly said to him, "I forgot! I ordered food!" Souji ducked under his seat, thankfully he wasn't spotted by the waiter. He dropped off a bowl of popcorn, a pitcher of Sprite and a single glass, a small salad, some nachos, and assorted candy. He bowed to Rise, and left. Souji got back up, and painfully removed some gum from his hair. Rise removed another piece of gum from his shoulder.

"Sorry. It slipped my mind." Rise gave him the only glass, filled with the Sprite. He shook his head, his coffee wasn't finished. "That's okay, you're under a lot of stress. You can have it."

"No, I insist. You have it." She passed it to him. He pushed back.

"No really. I don't want it."

"Come on, Senpai."

"Rise, I don't want it."

"I insist." It turned into a push war, ending with the glass spilling on the floor, soaking Rise's shoes. Souji grabbed some napkins and started to wipe off the soda.

"Stop, stop! You're only going to ruin them further!" She lightly kicked him, and he got back in his seat after placing the glass back on the table.

"Sorry."

"No, no. It's my fault. I spilled the drink." Rise just waved them off and they continue to watch the film.

The next scene showed the first scene with Suzu. She had some instincts of a caveman, but had some modern-day manners. She killed an wild beast with brute force, but she properly cleaned it, cut it up, and cooked to perfection. She shared it with her animal friends, and spoke several languages. She spoke modern-day English/Japanese, animal talk, and some sort of primitive language that she spoke with her tribe years ago.

"Rise…I'm sorry." Souji had to force the words out of his mouth. Why? Why was apologizing for sometime so simple so damn hard? Rise blushed.

"Don't apologize. It's not your entirely your fault." She rubbed up and down her right arm. Souji couldn't see it. The movie continued to show Suzu interact with her environment as the two tried to find something to say. Souji thought talking about Rise's career. Rise thought talking about Souji's studies. They stirred for a minute, until they worked up the courage to talk.

"Hey, how's your job/studies?" They said at the same time. They stared at each other for a bit.

"You go first." Rise said.

"All right." Souji sighed. No point in arguing. "Engineering is hard. Harder than fighting Shadow Mitsuo. More annoying than King Moron or Kashiwagi. But it's worth it. My parents actually had to come over to my dorm to help me on some of my assignments. But I think I might be able to get a apprenticeship with a drill company by next year…but you don't care, do you?"

"No, no. I do care. I can tell you're tired by all of this work. At least you had Kashiwagi for only a little while. I had her for a ENTIRE year!" Rise laughed, remembering the bad times. "Did you know that she was fired for having sex with a first year student?" Souji laughed, not surprised.

"I missed that! When did that happen?"

"Five weeks after your last visit to Inaba. When are you coming back?"

"Winter break. Dojima has asked me to come back over. What has my room become in my absence?"

"Nanako's room."

"Thought so. What about you?"

"Same old, same old. Go here, go there, entertain some fanboys, repeat. I have nothing new going on. Sorry." Rise looked down.

"There's nothing to be sorry about. Then again, I live a very boring life."

Suzu first meeting with the future humans came on screen. She first watched them from afar, where the male lead laid eyes on her for a single second before she ran behind some rocks. She carefully approached them, a hand-made spear at her side. The male lead followed the same suit, pistol down at his side. He went first, putting his gun down. Suzu did the same, though slower.

Rise looked forlorn. "You miss her." Souji said.

"I haven't been to her grave in years." Rise's voice broke a bit. "And yet, I promised. My job sucks!" Rise was on the verge of tears. "Oh god, why did I choose this movie? Her best and personal favorite. Why?" She looked at Souji with tears starting to form. "Oh, Souji. This is too much!" She hugged him. "God. God! I'm sorrrrrryyyy!" She started to cry. Souji hugged her back.

"Sorry for what?"

"My job forced us apart! It was optional, I could have just gone to college and got a real job!"

"With me?" Rise pushed him back.

"I'm not a stalker." She stopped crying. Her head turned down. "It's just…well…"

"This isn't easy to explain. I left my job once, so why not take off long enough to get a degree and a real job? I could have become a manager, and actually helped new idols rise to the top and have a good image. Idols can only go on for so long. My time is coming. I may have to the max of ten years left on my career, if things go smoothly. But a manager is forever. I could be someone."

"You're someone."The movie now shifted to the first action scene, as a new dinosaur (The changing of the earth caused some monsters to change.) destroyed the ship and then engaged the party. Suzu seemly ran off, leaving the party to try to piece the thick skin. Suzu would reappear on top of the a valley and then kill the dinosaur by swiftly cutting off its neck. The alien party had lost three non-important people.

"For ten more years! But a manager could leave a impact. I could take the clichéd idol image and turn it inside out! I really don't want to be remembered a s Risette."

"But as Rise Kujikawa, Manager."

"It would be nice."

"What a coincidence! My college has degrees in that said career."

"We could have stayed as a couple."

"True."

"I feel like I actually killed something I loved. We had something. What happened?"

"We both left each other. You're supposed to blame a little!" Souji pointed to himself.

"I don't wanna." Rise turned away. The first scene between Suzu and the male lead began. She was teaching him to speak the dead language ,as many ruins still held the same language. The main lead's entire family, as revealed, was killed together by a insane man five years ago. His wife wanted him to move on, preserve their memory with another chance. He just couldn't. Suzu's character never had a chance to meet anyone else.

"Rise-chan…why so sad?" He came closer. She didn't move. He grasped her by waist and pulled her close. Rise didn't pull away, she just buried her head in his chest. Some tears rolled down. The on-screen characters came closer to each other, realizing that a bond was coming on. A very deep bond, one that went beyond just a regular bond.

"Because…because…" She tried to form the words '_I love you'._ But they didn't come out. But they didn't die.

"You love me. I know." Rise looked up. "Senapi…"

"Come on. Say it. It's okay." His smile smoothed her. Some new-found courage arose within her.

"I love you…Senpai."

And, like the cliché done a thousand times, the two kissed at the same time the two characters on screen kissed.

But the cliché ends here.

The screen kiss lasted only a few seconds. But the kiss between Souji and Rise lasted…a little longer. It started as a simple lips kiss. But then the two came closer as their arms draped around them. Then it became a French kiss, with gentle noises coming from both. The onscreen characters almost seemed to watch them. And then finally, the two fell out of their chairs.

And we leave them to their own business. The movie didn't even reach the half-way point yet…

* * *

_We're not done yet…_


	3. Let's Live

_I promised, so here it is.

* * *

_

**1. Comfort**

Rise always had problems with fan letters, Souji knew how to deal with it.

**2. Kiss**

They had to do it in private to prevent the paparazzi from abusing their relationship.

**3. Soft**

Rise's skin was to die for.

**4. Pain**

Souji actually took a bullet for her; he didn't really mean it all those years ago.

**5. Potatoes**

Souji had too many choices to fix dinner.

**6. Rain**

The paparazzi confirmed the relationship when they found the couple under an umbrella.

**7. Chocolate**

What girl could resist?

**8. Happiness**

Rise's happiest moment is when Souji got down on his knee.

**9. Telephone**

Talking on it just wasn't the same.

**10. Ears**

Paparazzi, duh.

**11. Name**

A discussion before bed revealed that Souji couldn't think of good baby names.

**12. Sensual**

Souji had met several women in his life, but Rise just _stunned_ him.

**13. Death**

Souji actually had such a nightmare that made him cry.

**14. Sex**

Seems like every time they did it, it turned into a comical situation.

**15. Touch**

Rise knew that Souji had nimble fingers.

**16. Weakness**

Oddly enough, they both didn't have real weakness; save for each other.

**17. Tears**

Rise had a good long cry after the news of her grandmother.

**18. Speed**

"Souji, slow down, I'm not enjoying this!"

**19. Wind**

Souji oddly enough enjoyed when Rise's hair got into his face.

**20. Freedom**

Rise got a year off for her wedding.

**21. Life**

The marriage had to be pushed forward for Rise's new development.

**22. Jealousy**

Souji had to subdue an insane jealous fan to protect Rise. (It was also the same fan who shot Souji.)

**23. Hands**

They held their hands together while watching the last film that Rise had starred in.

**24. Taste**

Rise finally got better at cooking, but it became an acquired taste.

**25. Devotion**

"I do."

**26. Forever**

"Until death do us part."

**27. Blood**

The pregnancy proved to be a little too painful for Rise.

**28. Sickness**

Souji had developed a schedule to combat Rise's morning sickness.

**29. Melody**

Yosuke's gift was a song for the baby.

**30. Star.**

"It's a girl!"

**31. Home**

A house, far from the city, just applied to the couple.

**32. Confusion**

Would you believe me that neither of them knew how to change a diaper.

**33. Fear**

Even to the two members of the Inaba Investigation Team, a burglar still scared them.

**34. Thunder**

"Your turn." They both said.

**35. Bonds**

"_Thou hast established a new bond…thou shalt be blessed when creating the Personas of the Aeon arcana_…"

**36. Market**

Souji never interfered with Rise's career, until they started to make plushies of him…

**37. Technology**

It cost quite a buck, but the device did help with the baby and the parent's sleep.

**38. Gift**

The perfect gift for each other was each other.

**39. Smile**

For once, instead of Rise, her baby with a pure smile filled the magazine's cover.

**40. Innocence**

The crazed fan tried to prove that Souji attempted to kill him, but Rise saved him.

**41. Completion**

The two of them working on the new paint got the job done in half the time, half the cost.

**42. Clouds**

Rise pointed up in the sky. "Look Saya, a clown!"

**43. Sky**

Souji pointed up to the clouds. "Look Saya, there's a plane!"

**44. Heaven**

They got one, here on earth.

**45. Hell**

Once again, the paparazzi and the insane fan who just hated Souji.

**46. Sun**

They rose together…

**47. Moon**

…and they went down together.

**48. Waves**

Souji and Rise always made waves while in public.

**49. Hair**

Saya's hair was both Souji and Rise, grey, long and curly.

**50. Supernova**

You see, love to them not only meant themselves, but their kids; and they enjoyed every moment of it.

* * *

_At the heart, I'm a romantic._


End file.
